


The rose still blooms

by DevinTowerwood



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Aftercare, Begging, Crimson Rose, Cuckoldry, Established Relationship, F/F, Femdom, Mind Control, Multi, Orgasm Denial, Polyamory, Sex Magic, established polycule, guest appearances by Lindhart and Caspar, metamour
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-20
Updated: 2020-09-23
Packaged: 2021-03-07 17:54:24
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 9,342
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26561728
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DevinTowerwood/pseuds/DevinTowerwood
Summary: After dinner one night, Edelgard finds a letter informing her that Byleth has been kidnapped. In order to retrieve her, she'll have to brave the wicked sorceress Lysithea's vile games - and most evil magics!Then maybe they can cuddle.
Relationships: Edelgard von Hresvelg/Lysithea von Ordelia, Edelgard von Hresvelg/My Unit | Byleth, Edelgard von Hresvelg/My Unit | Byleth/Lysithea von Ordelia, My Unit | Byleth/Lysithea von Ordelia
Comments: 11
Kudos: 43





	1. My Detested Emperor,

**Author's Note:**

  * For [LesbianDragon_LD](https://archiveofourown.org/users/LesbianDragon_LD/gifts).



**Edelgard**

_Where has she run off to?_

Byleth had gone missing near the end of dinner. That wasn’t like her, though Edelgard had done her best to act as if it was expected. No one close enough to Edelgard to question her explanation had done so, nor had any of them seen when, exactly, Byleth had left the table. Peculiar.

Her first answer came in the form of a letter, left behind as a letter on Byleth’s bedroom desk. A simple piece of paper folded into a triangle, which read:

> _My detested Emperor,_
> 
> _I have taken your consort and seek to debase the seat of your empire. I am your enemy, but if you come alone, she will be returned to you unharmed. Come with guards, and you’ll regret it dearly._
> 
> _With deepest animosity,_
> 
> _Lysithea von Ordelia_

Edelgard sighed deeply. What kind of game was Lysithea playing? And why had she stolen Byleth right out of dinner to do it?

Game or not, though, Lysithea’s threats were to be taken seriously. Whatever kind of trouble Byleth was in, Edelgard was going to have to extricate her from it alone.

* * *

In order to save spell slots for her eventual encounter with Lysithea, Edelgard made her way to the throne room on the first floor on foot, which turned out to be a mistake. She found the room abandoned, with no more letters or hints left upon the throne or anywhere else obvious. Her detection spells turned up nothing more, and she was left stumped, pausing to consider matters upon her throne.

 _‘I have taken your consort and seek to debase the seat of your empire.’_ Surely the ‘seat’ of the empire would be her throne? This is where she sat while attending court, where most of her major decisions were first announced, where she heard the details of various financial and political proposals. Of course, she typically had information on these things beforehand through one method or another, and the matters of substance took her many hours of consideration behind closed doors - in her office.

 _Wait._ She blinked as the realization came to her. _My office? Is she holding Byleth captive in my own office?_

She snickered despite herself. “The audacity . . .”

The longer she thought about it, the more confident she became. Trying to upstage or intimidate her in the throne room was the stupidity of lesser men and women, and Lysithea ultimately would have surrounded herself with guards and mages whether she intended to or not. But on the highest floors of the palace, few would be nearby to hear or support Edelgard if she needed it - especially anyone who might be a threat to Lysithea.

“Well, let’s see if this theory holds water,” she muttered, and snapped her fingers.

* * *

She teleported within a few feet from the office door, not wanting to deal with the vertigo if Lysithea had warded the office itself. To her surprise (and vindication), she found the door to her office opened just a crack - a mistake neither she nor the staff here would make, meaning it wasn’t a mistake at all. There was something Lysithea wanted her to see before their confrontation.

Edelgard crept forward, peering through the crack at her candle-lit office. Inside, in her own chair, sat Lysithea, smug and regal, hair gently flowing under the influence of some spell. At first, Edelgard thought she couldn’t see Byleth, that she must be in some hidden corner of her room. Or, worse, in another location entirely.

“Please Lysithea . . . I can’t take it anymore.”

Lysithea’s gaze gave Byleth away, aimed at a mostly-hidden spot behind the desk, only some of her hair visible in the near-darkness.

“I thought I told you not to speak so familiarly,” she replied, imperious if not annoyed. “Or have your manners melted along with your brain?”

“No, no, I promise. I’ll have good manners, Mistress, if you’ll please just touch me.”

That was definitely Byleth’s voice, however faint, but the way she was speaking wasn’t like her at all. Byleth’s voice was always filled with confidence and strength - bravado, if you wanted to call it that, but with gentle wisdom behind it. The strange, breathy, submissive way she was talking now was almost eerie.

_And since when does she call Lysithea Mistress?!_

“Oh?” Proper annoyance was slipping into Lysithea’s voice. “And only if I touch you? If that’s the attitude you’re going to have, you can keep touching yourself and begging for all I care; I have no time for wretches who don’t know their place.”

Lysithea began to stand as if she were going to leave, but Byleth’s hand groped pitifully at her dress.

“No, please,” Byleth begged, louder and more desperate. “I’ll be good. I want to make my Mistress happy. I’ll do anything to make you happy, but that spell made me so hot I can’t take it anymore.”

_‘That spell?’_

Lysithea slowly lowered back into the seat, a cold smile on her lips. “You’ll do anything as long as it makes me happy?”

“Anything,” Byleth whimpered. “Please.”

_This is deeply abnormal, to say the least. And magic’s clearly at play - but what sort of magic could cause this?_

Edelgard cast another detection spell, but this time she immediately found what she was looking for: a _compulsion_ aura. 

_A compulsion?! Then Byleth likely isn’t even control of her own faculties!_

Lysithea cupped her hand underneath Byleth’s chin, raising it high enough that Edelgard could finally get a look at her. Her face was flushed and slightly sweaty, as if she’d been jogging - or, if Edelgard correctly understood the situation, overwhelmed with sexual desire until it blotted out everything else. She didn’t know of any spell that could do that, but what else could explain this?

“Then tell me that you love me,” Lysithea said, so softly that Edelgard couldn’t be sure she heard it right.

That is, until Byleth said, “I love you, Mistress. Lysithea.”

“Tell me that you want to serve me. And only me.”

“Only you. I only want to serve you, forever.”

Edelgard’s hands balled up into fists, fury rising more easily than she expected. Now she understood why Lysithea had left the door open like this - she wanted Edelgard to witness this moment. Lysithea had probably known as soon as Edelgard arrived, so she could make her a witness to this moment of betrayal. Byleth wasn’t in her right mind, so Edelgard could hardly blame her for what she said, but it still hurt to hear years of devotion tossed aside to some enchantment.

Lysithea’s smile grew into a cruel grin. “Good. And one more thing . . . stop masturbating except when I say so.”

At this, she leaned down and whispered something in Byleth’s ear that Edelgard could not here, which only deepened her frustration. As did, on some level, the fact that Lysithea had set things up so that she couldn’t see Byleth masturbating in the first place - she just _knew_ it was happening.

Byleth made some whining noises, but when Lysithea offered out her hand, she took it with both hands and kissed her fingers, a near-imitation of a dutifully-sworn oath.

Finally satisfied, Lysithea gestured for Byleth to rise, which left Edelgard with the (perhaps obvious) realization that Byleth was totally naked. Her form was heartbreakingly beautiful under the candlelight, and the way she needily grasped Lysithea’s hand and pressed it against her hand, the way she gasped as Lysithea finally gave in to her demands and began to touch her, to kiss her navel . . . had a rather immediate effect on Edelgard. As horrifying as the details of this scene might be, Edelgard hadn’t grown out of being both smitten and aroused every time she saw Byleth like this.

_Still, this can’t continue. Byleth is a captive, whether she realizes it or not._

Taking a moment to center herself for this potentially very awkward confrontation, Edelgard took a deep breath and-

A few stumbling footsteps came from behind her, along with some giggles, and then a surprised, “Oh, hey there your Majesty.”

-whipped around to find Caspar giggling, past tipsy and leaning on Lindhart, who had just spoken. Lindhart looked a little tipsy himself, but he was still the first one to notice Edelgard standing there, a plain smile on his face.

“What are you doing up here?” he asked, a fake innocence entering his voice.

_As if I couldn’t very well ask you the same thing._

Edelgard turned back towards her office, afraid that Lindhart and Caspar would get a glimpse of the scene she’d been watching, but to her surprise, she found her office completely empty. She shut the door, just in case.

She turned back to him, a practiced smile on her face. “Hello Lindhart; hello Caspar. I thought I heard a noise in my office, but it’s nothing. I’m just about to turn out the candles before I retire for the night.”

After a moment of hesitation on both their parts, she asked, “Have you gotten lost on your way to Caspar’s room?”

Lindhart’s face was blank for a moment, and Caspar just looked baffled by the question. Realization struck a few seconds later though, and Lindhart’s smile returned. “Oh, yes, you’re right, we’re on the wrong floor entirely. I’ll take him there.”

Edelgard nodded. “Of course. Good night you two.”

“G’night,” Caspar replied, as they turned to go.

“Good night your majesty. And do give my best wishes to Lysithea and the Professor.”

Edelgard flushed a little as the two of them walked off arm-in-arm. Given the door had only been open a few inches and he had been down the hall, there was no way he could have _seen_ anything, right? Not to mention how they had just disappeared when she wasn’t looking!

Edelgard opened the door and stepped inside, closing the door behind her. The room still looked empty, but there was a tingling sensation on the back of her neck that was enough to tell her she wasn’t alone, even without magic to confirm it.

“I know you’re in here,” she said, staring at her desk seat.

Still, they didn’t reveal themselves - not to say there wasn’t a response. Instead, she heard what could only be Byleth’s stifled moans. That, as well as a steady _shlick, shlick_ somewhere on the desk, made it only too clear what was happening.

“Show yourself.”

As the illusion began to fade, the first thing Edelgard saw was a hand clapped over Byleth’s mouth. She was bent over the desk, desperately clutching at its edge, her panting and moaning plenty loud even with the muffling. Lysithea fingered her from behind, visibly delighted at every noise, every rocking motion Byleth made in response to her thrusts. 

Byleth barely seemed to register that Edelgard stood there, but Lysithea’s eyes eventually left her prize to match Edelgard’s stare with utter contempt.

“I see you found my letter,” Lysithea said. “Welcome, Emperor. I’m glad you could be here to see this.”

“Lysithea. I-”

“Oh, Lysithea!” Lysithea’s hand slipped from Byleth’s mouth as soon as Edelgard started talking, and Byleth’s moan caught her off guard.

Byleth turned to look up at Lysithea, desperate. “Don’t look at her,” she said, “just please keep fucking me.”

Whether from embarrassment, fury, or arousal (or perhaps all three), Edelgard flushed red, clenching her fists. She was acting far too passively. She needed to put a stop to this. Byleth would be of no help here - she was already too far gone.

“Of course,” Lysithea said - and whatever she did Edelgard couldn’t see, but Byleth gasped with pleasure.

The past year with Byleth as her consort had left Edelgard intimately familiar with Byleth’s behavior during sex. She might never talk like this, but it was easy to see that she was getting close to cumming. _God_ it was hard to look at. And _god_ was it harder to not look at it.

“You cast a spell,” Edelgard said, a hard edge in her voice. “You _made_ her like this.”

“But of course,” Lysithea replied happily. “I can make anyone mine, if I want them.”

“No, no, you see. I know you and Byleth have been intimate before. That’s one thing.” Edelgard’s frustration with this whole show was beginning to boil over. “But using magic like _this?_ What in the world has gotten into you? You’ve gone way, way too far. I thought you were here to play a game, not . . . whatever the fuck this is.”

She gestured at Byleth, as if the look of rapture on her face was explanation enough. It was, to her. Byleth didn’t even look at _her_ with that kind of reverence. 

“Too far?” Lysithea snickered. “Professor - Byleth, my love, my pet. Am I going too far? Isn’t this what you want?”

Byleth’s moans were only getting louder - somebody might hear them outside, but Edelgard was past caring about that at this point.

“All I - want - is for you - to fuck me, Ly - Lysithea. I want you to - fuck me ragged. I want you to fuck me like a whore.”

Edelgard flinched, for the words were so unlike Byleth. She must really be out of her mind.

Lysithea laughed. “See? I’m only giving her what she wants. Something you obviously can’t give her. So why don’t you just watch while _I_ make her happy?”

And for some reason, she did. Her anger didn’t dissipate; her anger only grew, but she didn’t know how to escalate things from here. Lysithea wasn’t heeding her words, and Byleth couldn’t think of anything but getting fucked. The only place she saw to go from here was violence, but the thought of laying a hand on either of them to fix this was a deeply frightening one. Moreover, if she listened to Byleth’s words and forgot what she knew, it was almost possible to believe that all anyone here wanted was for Byleth to cum, and then it would all be over.

It was a magical sort of thinking, but she didn’t know what else to do, and sat there frozen as Byleth plateaued, red in the face, barely holding back her own orgasm. Lysithea seemed to notice it too, and stopped paying Edelgard any mind - she leaned down, her silver hair like a veil over Byleth’s skin, and kissed their back lovingly.

Edelgard loved watching Byleth cum, maybe more than anything else in this world. There was a reverence in seeing the love of her life lose herself to her ministrations. And no level of anger or jealousy took that away. Even knowing it wasn’t for her - that she was as good as invisible in this moment - Edelgard felt happy as Byleth finally peaked over the edge, and Lysithea giggled with absolute delight.

The anger was enough to change the minute after that, though.

Edelgard finally rounded her desk dragging Lysithea away by the throat and slamming her against the wall.

She said, “How dare you pretend this is what she wanted? You’re in control of her mind. Now let her go.” Her voice was cold as ice, allowing no deviation, no possible other course.

Lysithea didn’t argue, but she did say, “You’re hurting me, Emporer.”

_If I were really hurting you, you wouldn’t be able to breathe._

“Good.”

Byleth, finally recovering, picked herself up from the desk and followed after the other two, apparently oblivious to the conflict happening between them.

“El?” she asked in a voice so sweet in sent tingles up Edelgard’s spine. “You’re giving her all of the attention . . . I need it.”

Edelgard sighed. “This isn’t ‘attention,’ my love, this is violence. Lysithea has you under some sort of strange spell, and I-”

She cut off as she felt Byleth’s hands wrap around her, groping straight for her crotch. It wasn’t exactly erotic, but it was definitely startling.

Her grasp left Lysithea to fend Byleth off for a moment - “No, hon, now’s not the,” - but no sooner had she done so than she was lifted off her feet, smashed straight into the wall beside Lysithea. 

Violet glyphs surrounded Lysithea on all sides, and ethereal arms stretched from them, their strong hands holding her in place. 

“I don’t mean to hurt you,” Lysithea said, stepping back in front of Edelgard, “I just need you to stay still.”

“ _Lysithea_ ,” Edelgard seethed. “Haven’t you taken this all too far?”

She paused, as if considering, the magic coursing through her causing her eyes to glow, her hair to shimmer with an erratic energy. Edelgard had not seen her like this outside of battle - not ever.

“No,” she replied. “But I’ve almost taken it far enough.”

And with that, she raised up on her toes, grabbed Edelgard’s face, and kissed her. And not just to tease either - she held Edelgard close and kissed her passionately, until she started to feel dizzy. Edelgard didn’t even realize at first that the magical hands holding her in place had faced, for she still felt a little like she was floating, and surely magic must be holding her to make her kiss Lysithea back in this situation.

Lysithea took a step back, and Edelgard half-collapsed to the floor, her strength gone. She felt an intense absence as Lysithea stopped touching her, and then, a strange hunger. She sat there, panting, as an alien feeling of arousal spread through her body like a wildfire, and she knew another person’s touch was the only thing that could put it out.

She knew magic, but this was something new. Nothing could render her so powerless so easily.

She looked up at both Lysithea and Byleth, who watched her curiously.

“Wh-what did you do to me? Is this . . . poison?”

“Oh, no, no, nothing of the sort,” Lysithea replied, crouching in front of her, still composed despite everything. “I would never resort to something so cheap. This is dark magic, Edelgard, the kind you were always too afraid to learn.”

She raised a hand, gently this time, to Edelgard’s face, lifting her head up to look her right in the eye. Although it was reduced to a glimmer, magic still shone in her eyes.

“ _Succubare omega_. How do you like it? It makes the target subservient to the caster’s will for a time, and hopelessly desperate for sex. Not the most practical - you have to physically touch your target after all - but effective enough. Look at what it’s done to you, the Emperor, and your most beloved champion.”

“It won’t work on me,” Edelgard spat, but she could tell it was a lie. The spell, whatever it was, was changing her, and even now she felt so turned on, even from how close Lysithea’s mouth was to hers, or how radiantly beautiful Byleth looked.

Lysithea didn’t look convinced either, but she didn’t reply.

The silence was worse, because without anything to refute, the seconds just ticked by while Edelgard felt hotter and hotter, more and more humiliated.

“What do you want from me?” she asked. If she knew that, then at least there could be some distraction from this growing need.

Lysithea stroked her hair softly. “Edelgard . . .” she whispered, almost fondly.

Then, firmly, “I want Byleth to strip you naked here in your office. I want her to have her way with you. I want her to fuck you on your desk, and I want you to know she’s only doing it because it pleases me.”

Edelgard bit her lip, trying to concentrate, to avoid slipping into this slanted world where what Lysithea wanted mattered most, but it was getting difficult. It was so much harder given how good that sounded.

Lysithea continued to stroke her hair, as if to soothe her. “Now. What are you going to do?”

And, as if the question gave her strength, Edelgard managed to pull herself up to her feet. Byleth still watched her, the placid expression she always wore on her face, if somewhat undermined by the deep flush in her face.

Lysithea stepped out of the way, and Edelgard offered out her hand.

“Byleth . . . please. I want you, and I can’t think of anything else anymore.”

Byleth nodded, and without hesitation cleared the distance between them, kissing Edelgard tenderly.

The kisses lost that tenderness quickly though, turning hungry as need consumed them both. Edelgard reached up to begin undoing the buttons on her attire, and Byleth’s followed, unfastening them with practiced dexterity. As soon as the vest was undone, Byleth’s kisses fell to her neck, and each one sent an electric rush down Edelgard’s spine.

The rest of her clothes were far easier to remove, and soon, Edelgard lay on her back upon her desk, fingers in Byleth’s hair while they kissed along her chest. As much as she loved the foreplay, the affection, the loving kisses, she had been desperate for someone to touch her since she saw Byleth’s own sexual desperation, and she couldn’t take it anymore.

She lifted a leg over Byleth’s shoulder, pushing her down towards the floor.

“Please, Byleth, just . . . get me off.”

She heard a snicker from elsewhere in the room, but Byleth was quick to comply, dropping to her knees at the edge of the desk.

“Slut,” Lysithea said. Edelgard had lost track of her for a moment, but she now sat in a chair off to the side of the desk, simply watching.

“You did this to me, Lysithea. You-” but she cut off to moan as Byleth took as long, slow lick over her vulva, and Edelgard was made forcibly aware of how aroused her body really was. She wasn’t going to last. And if Byleth really fucked her like Lysithea had told her to, she was going to lose her mind.

The next minute left her unable to speak, as every lick, every touch from Byleth slashed through her with total pleasure. Whatever Lysithea had claimed her spell did, it also made Edelgard feel more sensitive than she had in her entire life, and it was all she could do to breathe between moments of mind-numbing delight. She only realized now how strong Byleth had really been, as coherent as she’d been under this spell.

When she finally could speak, Edelgard said, “You . . . must want me so bad . . . huh Lysithea?”

Her expression turned cold. “Don’t be ridiculous. I only wanted to reward Byleth for her loyalty - she loves you, after all.”

That much was clear - if, from nothing else right now, the way Byleth seemed to moan with delight every time her ministrations made Edelgard moan, spasm, or twitch. It created a wonderful feedback loop, as every reminder of how Byleth was enjoying herself heightened the pleasure for Edelgard, and Edelgard only held her tighter against her cunt. Edelgard was greedy for pleasure, and Byleth was desperate to please her, and nothing made Edelgard happier than that right now.

“Mmm!” Edelgard whimpered into her own hand, her legs trembling. She was so close, and Byleth’s mouth and tongue pleasured her almost in a frenzy.

“Are you going to cum, slut?” Lysithea taunted.

“Y-yes…” Edelgard whimpered, desperate for that moment of release, starting to buck her hips, desperate for that white-hot moment.

“Hmm,” Lysithea hummed. “I don’t think so. Not until I say so.”

“You . . . can’t be serious,” Edelgard whined, but even as she did so, Byleth slowed her pace, turning gentle with kisses and licks, and she felt that moment drift further away. She tried to buck her hips again, desperate for just the right friction, just the right kiss to send her over the edge, but it wouldn’t come.

“You belong to me now, Emperor. You’ll cum when I’m satisfied you’ve earned it. And what have you done to earn it?”

“E-everything. Everything! I’ve done everything you’ve asked.”

“Not everything.”

Lysithea stood, walking over to the desk directly beside Edelgard, and reached out to touch her hair. 

And then, she knotted her hands deep in her hair, and pulled. The pain was sharp at first, then duller, but the constant smarting along with Byleth’s refusal to get her off made her want to cry.

“I still want you to beg.”

It was humiliating, but if that was all she wanted, it was worth it.

“Byleth, please . . . I need it. Your mouth feels so-”

Lysithea tugged at her hair again, and Edelgard immediately knew she’d done something wrong. 

“L-Lysithea? Please, will you let me cum?”

This time, there was no painful tug, and Lysithea smiled.

“Almost . . . but louder this time.”

Edelgard hesitated, and that was enough to earn her another painful tug. As tears started forming in her eyes, she cried out, “Please, Lysithea, make me cum!”

Lysithea didn’t let go of her hair, but she did say, “Byleth, do it like you were doing before. But Edelgard . . . don’t cum until I say so, or you’ll be very sorry.”

Edelgard knew there was no reason to fight anymore. The pain from her hair diminished as Lysithea’s grip softened, and Byleth’s cunnilingus grew intense again, herself desperate to make Edelgard cum. It took barely any time at all before Edelgard felt herself on the edge, holding herself back with all of her will to avoid any more pain - or worse, somehow losing this pleasure. Her breath was frantic from the resistance, and her legs shook so badly it rattled the table, but still she fought herself back from that edge.

And that’s when Lysithea kissed her again, all tenderness, for just a second.

She whispered, “Byleth needs her reward . . . cum for her.”

So desperately did Edelgard want to grant that wish, and so lovely was the crest into her orgasm, that she started to yell, “Oh . . . . my fucking god . . . Byleth! I’m!”

She was left unable to even finish the words, riding waves of ecstasy against Byleth’s face, cumming more intensely than she thought she ever had before. Byleth lapped it up all the while, burrowing her ever deeper into that pleasure for what seemed like an hour, though couldn’t have been more than a few minutes.

And finally, when her breathing slowed, and her senses returned to her, she looked up at Lysithea, and found her at the edge of tears.

Lysithea said, “Guys? I want to stop being mean now. I think that was too much for me.”

Realizing that the spell - and the scene - was over, Edelgard picked herself up and stumbled off the desk, draping an arm over Lysithea to bring her into a hug. It took Byleth a bit longer, but soon they had Lysithea cocooned between them, enveloped in a big embrace, while she shed a few tears.

“I’m sorry,” she sniffled, “I think that was too much for me. I got freaked out with the magic and stuff and I just think I’m done.”

“Absolutely,” Byleth crooned, kissing her just above the ear. “I’m sorry we pushed you so far.”

“I should apologize too,” Edelgard whispered. “I got a little too into the conflict. I know you were just teasing. I shouldn’t have hurt you.”

Lysithea shook her head. “No, no; I mean, I liked the throat bit and the wall slamming and stuff. I just felt weird using magic on you like that. I’d never done that spell before and it kind of weirded me out.”

The three of them swayed in their strange embrace, all totally unwilling to leave it to settle into a better formation to talk.

“ _Succubare omega_?” Edelgard asked. “I thought you used it on Byleth too, though?”

Byleth shook her head ‘no,’ and Edelgard just shot her a puzzled look back.

Lysithea said, “No, I just got into the whole scene and decided to try it out. Byleth was just pretending - we were just planning to pretend - actually casting it was my idea.”

_What._

Edelgard shot another questioning look to Byleth, but she only shrugged in return.

“Byleth’s a really good actress I think,” Lysithea said, “but the only spell I cast was a _mock magic_ \- it’s an illusion that looks like other spells - for authenticity. She’s super convincing. It was honestly really hard not to have sex until you got here to watch.”

Byleth blushed, but her expression didn’t change. “I was trying my best?”

Edelgard blinked, still stupefied. “Well your best is very, very convincing. I’m surprised that didn’t come up more when you were our teacher.”

She pouted. “I tried my best all the time when I was at Garreg Mach.”

Lysithea laughed at that. “Of course you did, Professor, but not in like. A horny way. You said ‘whore.’”

Edelgard nodded. “You did! That was very startling. I’ve never heard you talk that way before.”

Lysithea’s tears finally seemed to be drying, and Byleth was the first to break off the hug, leaving Lysithea cradled in Edelgard’s arms.

Byleth crossed her arms over her chest, a ponderous expression on her face. “I thought it would be sexy?”

This time, Edelgard and Lysithea both laughed.

“You sure did,” Edelgard said.

“Every battle is a chance to grow, I guess,” Lysithea giggled.

Byleth glared. “Why are you making fun of me? I improvised!”

Edelgard shook her head, and finally took a step back from Lysithea. “We’re not making fun of you, my teacher, we’re only admiring you. We love you, I promise.”

Edelgard looked around at the scene they’d created: her desk was a mess, her clothes sat in a heap in one corner of the room while Byleth’s sat in the other, and various pieces of them were sticky messes now, not to mention any wetness that may have gotten onto their clothes. Her desk and the laundry could be handled tomorrow - she didn’t really feel like handling any more problems today.

She sighed, more content than anything. “That said, I’m feeling rather tired now. Should we retire to my bedroom?”

Byleth bowed her head slightly. “Of course, your majesty.”

Lysithea’s head was also bowed as she asked, “Shall I . . . come as well? Or just Byleth tonight?”

Smiling warmly, Edelgard replied, “Why don’t we all sleep together tonight? We don’t all often have the chance to sleep the same hours, after all, so let’s make the most of it.”

Her smile turned wicked as she tacked on, “Besides, I haven’t had the chance to repay you for that nasty trick you pulled on me. I may have provoked you, but you still cast a most _evil_ spell on your Emperor, after all.”

Lysithea giggled and gave a curtsy. “Of course, your majesty.”

* * *

And for all of her devious planning to the contrary, Edelgard fell asleep that night beside her lovers, too exhausted to exact her revenge beyond a loving kiss and a wish ‘goodnight.’

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stay tuned for Chapter 2, for cuddling and Lysithea receiving her just desserts.


	2. Our Dear Teacher

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lysithea fails to masturbate covertly in bed next to Edelgard, hiding what deep love she has for the emperor. Those feelings start to come out as Edelgard's punishment turns into sweet lovemaking, leading to a tearful confession.
> 
> Byleth contemplates what she has lost and stands to lose, and comforts Lysithea.

**Lysithea**

It's true that Lysithea had been rather upset by the end of that scene. It's also true that she wasn't particularly into cuckoldry, and watching Byleth go down on Edelgard like a feral animal didn't innately feel special or good. In fact, learning how to include Edelgard in scenes where she and Byleth were together, especially given how rarely they actually got to be together, had been one of the hardest things about adapting to the relationship the three of them shared. It wasn't in her nature to share. She much preferred to take.

None of that prevented her from being too turned on to sleep in bed that night.

She had somehow, atrociously, ended up on the opposite side of bed from Byleth. Bad enough as that was, Edelgard had fallen asleep well onto Lysithea's end of the Emperor's enormous bed, and her face was perilously close to Lysithea's. Asleep as she was, she had no idea how sweet and innocent she looked, or how beautiful her white hair was in the moonlight let in through the balcony window, or how much that last kiss still tingled on Lysithea's lips.

Lysithea hadn't been in love with Edelgard when this all started. She had loved Byleth, just as she had loved Byleth for years. And when Byleth came back, when the war ended, and they were now peers in experience, Lysithea had been willing to do anything to share that love. Serving the Emperor's whims in their bed had been little different than serving in the Black Eagles - the price of doing what she needed to do.

Sometime recently, that had started to change. When Edelgard spoke of her possessively, she no longer felt like a subject or a pet. She felt like . . . well, something like how Byleth must feel about her. Chosen. Special. _Reverent_.

Staring at Edelgard's face like this filled her with many emotions, yes, but first among them was just raging desire.

Of course, she could not kiss or otherwise bother Edelgard - she was asleep! And the Emperor! But so too could she not bear the thought of simply watching like this until the sun rose. She needed release so she could rest.

Her one flaw was thinking she could get herself off while still watching Edelgard. Even as she avoided making any moans or other sudden noises, her breathing was still unsteady. The room was still far too quiet to hide the _shlick_ every time she wet her fingers.

Eventually, Edelgard stirred. It was so slight that Lysithea thought she must have just been dreaming.

But then she whispered, "Enjoying yourself?"

Lysithea, of course, stopped dead in her tracks. "What?" she whispered back.

"I was just enjoying the sound. You don't have to stop on my account."

Lysithea blushed, very much stopping on her majesty's account. "I'm embarrassed that I woke you up."

"Don't be," Edelgard replied. She reached out, wrapping an arm around Lysithea, and pulling herself a little closer. "I didn't punish you like I promised. That's my mistake."

"You don't _have_ to punish me, you know. You are the Emperor, after all."

She shook her head. "No, that's just it. I'm the Emperor, so I must stay true to my word."

She caught Lysithea's chin between her fingers. "Here," she said, "a fitting punishment," and kissed Lysithea as tenderly as if it were their first.

The sudden romance (or what she certainly felt to be romantic!) just made Lysithea's heart throb. She felt supremely confident that Edelgard did not love her as a lover, but as a ruler loves a subject, or a comrade loves a friend, and yet she could do _this_ as if it were the easiest thing in the world!

But for some reason, Lysithea decided it was time to push her luck. As usual.

She said, "But maybe . . . I haven't learned my lesson yet."

" _Oh?_ " Edelgard positively purred. "Do you need firmer discipline?"

Lysithea nodded. "I think so."

Edelgard's face was hard to read under the moonlight, but at least she was smiling.

Lysithea grabbed her hand and led it under the covers, placing Edelgard's fingers on her vulva. "Here," she whispered; she leaned in for another kiss and said, "and here."

Edelgard obliged her twice, her fingers quickly testing how wet she was while rolling partially on top of her, kissing her more deeply. Lysithea, for her part, just tried to make things easier for Edelgard by spreading her legs and leaning into the kisses, but Edelgard's weight on her left her unable to do much more.

Edelgard drew herself up to her knees, moving her kisses away from Lysithea's lips to her neck. Each kiss was accompanied with a soft suck that left Lysithea's skin feeling hot. When she finally found a sweet spot where her neck met her shoulder, Edelgard lingered there a moment, biting down enough to make Lysithea squirm.

Her ragged breath seemed like enough to boost Edelgard's confidence, because as her kisses drifted down her Lysithea's collarbone, she grinded her fingers over her clit, prompting a barely-suppressed gasp.

_Don't wake up, Byleth._

Whether she was ashamed, or whether she just wanted to keep Edelgard all to herself, Lysithea could not tell. But at the very least, she wanted Edelgard's undivided attention right now.

After making a few 'kisses' so deep they were sure to leave a bruise along Lysithea's sternum, Edelgard whispered, "Would it be too much trouble to remove your night gown?"

Lysithea shook her head, sitting up just enough to take it off. Her underwear was stuck down near her knees, so she got rid of that as well.

Edelgard wasted no time pushing her back down and sitting between her legs, leaving Byleth totally alone with most of the bed, just a silhouette outside the moonlight. Edelgard took a second to find where she wanted her fingers working to pleasure Lysithea, then leaned down, kissing Lysithea's breasts each with a sweet few kisses.

Lysithea had never been topless when they were in a scene together, and she expected that was the extent of Edelgard's generosity. So when her tongue started drawing sweet circles around her nipples, she was caught by surprise. Edelgard seemed to notice, flicking her tongue over the nipple before sucking on it. Her finger strokes became longer but harder, as if she already knew how that would affect Lysithea. It only got worse as Edelgard started using her other hand, playing with and pinching whichever nipple she wasn't licking and sucking on, all the while finding her rhythm on Lysithea's clit.

It felt good . . . but it was also a little more forceful than Lysithea wanted.

"Edelgard? Edelgard?"

Edelgard paused to look up at her, hair spilling everywhere in a messy way Lysithea never got to see. Adoration and embarrassment mixed together in another blush.

"If you wouldn't mind . . . delaying my punishment, I have something a little different in mind. If that would be okay?"

And, to her surprise, Edelgard simply tilted her head and smiled. "Of course."

Lysithea dragged her legs up beneath her, sitting up to explain: "I'd like to be your little spoon, if that's okay. And then, you could . . . well, you could finger me, and I could . . ."

For as much trouble as she was having expressing what she wanted, Edelgard seemed to understand. She nodded, scooting over on the bed so Lysithea could lay down, and pulled her body in behind her as she did so. She slipped an arm under Lysithea's neck as well, reaching around to fondle her chest, and kissed the top of her spine. Edelgard took a few seconds of stroking her vulva before finally putting her fingers inside her, but when she did, Lysithea did nothing to stifle her moan - she'd just have to hope Byleth was too deeply asleep to hear.

Edelgard's body was warm and comforting, exactly what Lysithea wanted to sink back into to relax and just feel what was being done to her. Edelgard's kisses and touches made her feel enveloped in that warmth, free to drift from this world of pleasure to an even deeper one.

She conjured the image of Edelgard on the edge of orgasm again, and reached down to feel her own clit. That face, that blissful face, it was all she needed - the fact that Edelgard was also fingering her only pushed her along faster.

They stayed like that - Edelgard kissing all over her neck and back, pumping her fingers in rhythm with Lysithea's rocking hips - until Lysithea could feel her orgasm building, until she started biting her own lip just to keep from making a sound. Not that they were being quiet, what with Edelgard's fingers fucking her and her whole body trembling under her kisses. It wasn't the spectacle that they'd had before, but it was exactly what Lysithea wanted. To feel the affection in each touch. To have her own pleasure exactly as she wanted it, and for Edelgard to freely give it. No distance. No ceremony. No games. Just Edelgard and her.

Lysithea wanted to stay quiet, but she also needed to say how she felt. She needed Edelgard to understand.

But all she could muster was an unsteady word, barely louder than a whisper:

" _El._ "

It wasn't a name she was supposed to use. It wasn't even a name she was supposed to _know_ , though Byleth had let it slip on more than one occasion. It was for Byleth and Byleth alone.

She felt Edelgard's breath hot on her ear.

"Yes, love?" was all she asked.

"I'm going to cum."

She hadn't expected Edelgard's sigh of pleasure, or how she quickened her pace immediately, pushing Lysithea even faster.

"That would make me very happy," Edelgard whispered, kissing her neck. 

A tremor ran from Lysithea's neck, down her spine, and into her legs. Whether Edelgard was just trying to coax her or whether she was genuine was immaterial. Edelgard wanted her to cum. That was exactly how she had been feeling as she pulled at Edelgard's hair, denying her what she wanted. But Edelgard was being kind. They were in harmony, at least in this moment.

"Cum for me, Thea."

Lysithea's orgasm kept building, reaching a point where she knew she could cum, but her own and Edelgard's frantic motions only pushed her further. Her thighs shook under the pressure of what was building inside her. She was moaning openly, desperate for climax, until Edelgard offered her own fingers, and Lysithea bit down to muffle herself. It was only a desperate few seconds, but the pleasure was blinding, her sense of place and time melting away as her moans were forced into grunts against her muzzle.

"Cum for me."

And finally, the orgasm building inside of her came like a crashing wave, and it was all she could do to jerkily rock against Edelgard's fingers.

" _Fuck,_ " Edelgard said, as if she herself was cumming. She kept pumping her fingers in Lysithea's pussy until her body stopped spasming, until the room came back into focus, and Lysithea grabbed her fingers to make her stop.

Lysithea's breathing was ragged, and, to her surprise, so was Edelgard's, as if she had been holding her breath. She rolled around as soon as her hands felt like they were working again, and, throwing her caution to the wind, threw herself upon Edelgard to kiss her. She didn't want to waste a second of this lovely denouement without her lips on Edelgard's. And Edelgard obliged her again, kissing her long and deep, an arm still wrapped around her to hold her close.

Her breathing still heavy as they parted, Lysithea only said, "Thank you."

"It was my pleasure," Edelgard said.

They shared another kiss, then untangled themselves a bit, simply lying side by side. She stared into Edelgard's eyes, and Edelgard stared back, a small still on her face.

"You've never called me El before," she said.

Lysithea bit her lip, now frustrated with herself for that slip.

"I know. I'm sorry, I know it's not for me."

But Edelgard shook her head. "No," she reached out and took Lysithea's hand, bringing it to her face to kiss, " _thank you._ "

After a brief pause, Edelgard explained, "It was the name my family called me when I was a child. It makes me happy to hear my family say it once again."

Tears came unbidden in an instant. "F-family?" Lysithea hadn't known its origin, only its speaker. It was even more sacred than she realized.

Edelgard nodded. "Yes. You're my family, as adulterous as that might be to say about another's wife. I love Byleth. Byleth loves you. You love Byleth. I love you. I never dreamed of being this happy, or having this much love in my life."

It knot formed in Lysithea's throat, and her tears were followed with outright crying. "I love you too," she said. She could pretend no longer. "Not because Byleth loves you . . . I just love you."

Edelgard let go of her hand, and for a second, she thought her words had upset her. She might have started crying even harder, had Edelgard not brushed hair away from her face and cupped her cheek.

She said, "Then I'm even happier than I was before."

_Ah._

_Then my tears won't be stopping anytime soon._

Lysithea wrapped her arms around Edelgard, burying her face against her chest, and let the tears come. Tears of joy, and regret, and sorrow all at once. Being in love, being happy, these were the things she wanted most now, but for how long would that remain an option? How many more nights could she spend with Edelgard and Byleth? How many? She would treasure each one. She would not forget a single one.

"Your tears might wake our dear teacher," Edelgard teased her, petting her hair and holding her close.

"Oh, I've been awake the whole time."

Lysithea's crying stopped immediately out of shock.

In unison, she and Edelgard both whisper-shouted:

" _What?!_ "

Byleth sat up, still a dark silhouette across the bed. "I'm sorry, it just seemed like you two were having a moment."

Startled, Edelgard asked, "When - when did you wake up, my love?"

"Oh, I just never fell asleep. I was just trying to give you some space."

Lysithea was flushed red with humiliation as she yelled (a little louder than warranted): "Professor!"

Articulating anything deeper was beyond her, and scolding Byleth ultimately fell to Edelgard. Luckily for Byleth though, Edelgard was tired, and soon they all agreed to rest (for real this time).

**Byleth**

Byleth wasn't able to get much sleep. Sleeping soundly had, strangely enough, gone away with the end of the war. Now when she lay in bed at night, all sorts of worries, cares, and plans seemed to pile up, more noise than anything. When she had been a teacher, she said that all of her best thinking happened at night. As it turned out, that had more to do with the fact that Sothis was there more than any peculiarity of her own brain.

Sothis was here no longer. Byleth was Enlightened no longer. And she no longer felt wisdom guiding her thoughts into perfect arrangement. For the first time, she was alone. She was human.

She leaned against the balcony railing outside of the Emperor's bedroom, the waxing moon her only light to see the city of Enbarr with. It was a beautiful city, filled with art and culture that only a thousand years of prosperity can bring, and though this was where she belonged now, it did not feel like home. Almost every moment before the past year she thought of for comfort reminded her of Garreg Mach, and the crypts that lay beneath it.

_I wonder when the palace will feel like home._

"You're up early."

Byleth turned to look, and found Lysithea stepping out onto the balcony dressed in her night gown. She closed the door behind her and took her place by Byleth's side without needing a response.

"Something on your mind?" she asked.

Byleth nodded. She placed a hand on her chest and said, "My heart is beating. It's a peculiar feeling."

She offered out her arm, and Lysithea took it with a smile, linking them together.

She hadn't told them about Sothis - not even Edelgard, not entirely. About the Crest of Flames, and the experiment the Archbishop conducted on her, she had shared, but not that Sothis ever spoke to her. She was, as far as they were concerned, an artificial child of the goddess made by a madwoman, and the archbishop's death weakened her, but ultimately set her free of a destiny she'd never wanted or asked for.

But she had accepted Sothis long ago. For a time, they were one and the same. She had never meant for them to part.

She didn't want to talk about that, so she said, "A lot happened tonight. Do you want to talk?"

Lysithea nodded. "If you don't mind."

"Never."

There was a short pause, but Lysithea clearly knew what she wanted to say.

"Part of me - a very big part - is glad I was able to tell Edelgard how I've been feeling. I don't want to hide what's in my heart, and the idea of being her family . . . feels like more than I could ever ask for. I feel so special. And I believe her when she says she loves me, but how do I know if it's the same kind of love that I'm feeling?"

Lysithea was never content to second-guess herself. She triple- and quadruple-checked herself on everything from the smallest details of notes to the greatest, most abstract experiences of her life. From what she'd heard from others, people found it maddeningly stressful. But Byleth loved that about her. She never stopped growing. She never stopped becoming stronger in every way.

She asked, "Does it have to be?"

Lysithea could solve this herself, Byleth knew. But she also knew that asking simple questions often helped Lysithea think things through. It cost her little, and gave Lysithea a lot.

"Hmm," Lysithea hummed. "Does it? I don't know. I'm greedy. I want everything. I want to be on her mind. I want her to adore me, but not . . . like a child. Just for everything I am."

She paused again, still thinking. "I want her to feel what I'm feeling, I think. I don't want her to be above that, above me."

Byleth interpreted: "You want to be beside your lover, not behind your leader."

Lysithea nodded, relief evident on her face. "Yeah."

Byleth smiled, un-linking her arm to instead wrap her arm around Lysithea's shoulder. "I understand completely. When I was Edelgard's teacher, it was my job to lead her, and yet my duty to follow her. Being by her side was the natural conclusion . . . but it's different for you. You can't just step out of the role you've played for years just because you've fallen in love."

Lysithea sunk her whole body against Byleth, eyes closed, her features softened from their cares.

"Yes," she said. "Just like with you. But . . . different."

"Mmhmm," Byleth said, turning to rest her chin on top of Lysithea's head. "Like with me. Only now you can't play the _'I'm the most powerful sorceress in the world and I'll protect you'_ card as a romantic gesture, given she expects that in due course."

"Hey, don't be mean! I was really nervous."

"Yes, I know," Byleth teased, kissing the top of her head. "And you were still perfect. How was I going to say 'no' to something like that?"

"It - it was right after I got married, to be fair."

"Did Lindhart have some misconceptions about the faithfulness of your marriage that I don't know about?" Byleth said, still teasing.

Lysithea was growing obviously flustered. "Well, no, but. You know. You could have said 'no' out of propriety."

"But I could never say 'no' to you, my sweet," Byleth replied, giving her even more kisses atop the head.

Lysithea whimpered, but made no further arguments. They just stood like that for a long time, with Byleth's arms wrapped around Lysithea, and Lysithea letting her hold all her weight, knowing she was totally secure. Byleth's arms were strong. She'd never let go, and she'd never let Lysithea fall.

After a long time, Lysithea said, "Lindhart is a good man."

"Hm?"

She shrugged. "You know him. He didn't want to work for the empire when the war ended. He had no plans to get married. But he did it. I got to live here, in Enbarr, and he studies crests under Edelgard's orders."

She paused for a moment, then continued. "He told me once, that perhaps I didn't have to choose between life and my crests. That just because my life had been shortened didn't mean it would be short. Perhaps there was no need to give anything up. He even tried to tell Edelgard that when he became Minister . . . but she wouldn't take the risk."

She laced her fingers together as if praying. "I love him for trying. And I love her for saying 'no.' Is that weird?"

Byleth hummed for a moment, thinking.

"They both want you to be happy and healthy. I think that alone is something to be happy for."

Lysithea sighed, though whether it was happy or weary, she could not tell.

She said, "When Edelgard said she never dreamed of having this much love in her life . . . I feel the same way. But it also terrifies me. I can't just die and leave everyone I love. But there is no guarantee that we'll find the people who did this to me, who did this to Edelgard and her family. And whether we do or do not, there's no guarantee that what was done can be undone."

Things were complicated from Byleth's perspective. What was done to her happened long before she was conscious of anything, and it seemed to come at no cost to her life. Indeed, her crest had granted her abilities beyond even when Edelgard or Lysithea were capable of. The destruction of her crest reverted her back entirely to the capabilities of a human - it even made her hair change back to its original color. But she had, in some respects, been the perfect version of the experiment performed on those two, not the default. No part of her experience - from the certainty of her reversion to the loss she felt following it - necessarily applied to them. The one thing it made her confident of was that finding the ones who did it was the key. For her, it had all come back to Rhea. For them, it must surely be-

"They who slither in the dark," Lysithea said.

Byleth blinked, getting the strangest sense that her mind was being read.

"Do you think they're out there? Watching us?"

 _Oh. Lysithea's thoughts simply took her to the same_ place.

"Who's to say?" Byleth replied, although the answer was _'yes.'_ "Until Hubert and Dorothea feel confident, we have to assume they are. The Sword of the Creator . . ."

She trailed off. _It will never serve Edelgard without a crest stone, and she'll never wield it with the power they wanted. Rhea made sure of it._ We _made sure._

"They'll come for it," Lysithea said, picking up where Byleth trailed off. "They'll try again. They're immortal, aren't they? Of course they'll wait, and they'll try again."

Byleth shook her head. "We won't let them. We'll find them."

Lysithea started to tremble. At first, Byleth thought that she was frightened, but then she noticed the violet miasma that started to flow from Lysithea. It wasn't being directed or controlled, so it couldn't hurt her, but it still startled her.

"We'll crush them," Lysithea continued. "We'll crush them all before they can hurt anyone else. If it's the last thing my body can do, I swear I'll kill them with the crests they gave me. We are not their plaything."

Byleth had spent a lot of time thinking about revenge. For Edelgard, for Lysithea, for Arianrhod, for Jeralt. Even, in some ways, for Rhea. She wanted to make them answer for their crimes. But some misdeeds can't be answered for with a court or even a swing of the sword. For a time, she'd even thought there was nothing that could heal Fodlan from the countless horrors they inflicted upon it. The one who had finally said the word, who showed her the path, was not the person she expected - Hubert. A pragmatist like Hubert told her that, past revenge, there could be justice. For Fodlan. For Byleth and her loved ones. And they were going to have to make it.

So she could not disparage Lysithea's hopes to take revenge. Byleth knew she had a long life ahead of her, that even if Edelgard and Lysithea were to perish, it would fall to her to see justice done in their name. But there was some chance that revenge was the only justice Lysithea would have the chance to see.

So she said, "We'll crush them together. We're the Black Eagles. We fight together."

Lysithea's hands settled over Byleth's. "This I vow," she said, echoing the words she'd once sworn to Edelgard, and again to Lindhart.

The miasma began to clear, and Byleth pressed a kiss just behind Lysithea's ear.

She said, "This I vow."

They held each other close, and waited for the sunrise.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading this two-part story! I've had a lot of feelings about these three since completing Crimson Rose, and for the longest time I had no idea how to put those feelings into story format. When I realized that the key ingredient I was missing was cuckoldry and crying, it just about blew my socks off. I hope you had fun. And, if you're willing, please pause for a moment to leave a comment - I'd love to see what people think about what I had to say, or even if just the smut was fun to read. I appreciate the time you took to read it.


End file.
